Honda, Bakura, and the Three Trolls
by tsutsuji
Summary: Bothered by school bullies, Ryou Bakura finds he has more than one protector
1. Default Chapter

Honda, Bakura, and the Three Trolls

Rating: G (unnoticable hints of Bakura/Ryou in this story, and later some Honda/Ryou UST)

Summary: Bothered by school bullies, Ryou discovers he has more than one protector. 

Notes: Takes place after Duelist Kingdom and before Battle City. The background for this story is a mix of manga and anime canon, meaning certain conflicting versions of events at Duelist Kingdom are referred to, and the Shadow Game Bakura played with Yugi and friends was Monster World, not Duel Monsters.

I have no idea if Japanese high school students have classes like "Western Literature," but if they do, this is one author they ought to be reading, especially Bakura. I assume he's reading the Japanese translations of Tolkien, not reading it in English; for info on the Japanese editions check out 

http://pblancho.free.fr/ja1/html/image001.html 

and _The Annotated Hobbit._

****

_He was desperate. He must get away, out of this horrible darkness, while he had any strength left. He must fight. He must stab the foul thing, put its eyes out, kill it. It meant to kill him. No, not a fair fight. Gollum had no sword. Gollum had not actually threatened to kill him, or tried to yet. And he was miserable, alone, lost. A sudden understanding, a pity mixed with horror, welled up in Bilbo's heart: a glimpse of endless unmarked days without light or hope of betterment, hard stone, cold fish, sneaking and whispering._

_..._

Ryou Bakura shuddered, suddenly feeling a chill on his skin, though the sun was still warm and the day bright around him. He was sitting on a wooden bench beside a path that ran behind the school library, and birds were twittering in the bushes. In the background there was the noise of traffic on the road beyond the trees and the chatter of other students enjoying their lunch break outside. He looked up and around, a little surprised to see the day still going on around him, when for the last half hour his mind had been in a deep cavern below ground, guessing riddles by a cold dark lake. 

He looked down at the book in his hands: _The Hobbit_ by J.R.R. Tolkien. For years he'd been meaning to read it, and now that it had turned up on the reading list for his Western Literature class he was finally getting the chance. He knew little about it, except that it was a story of magic and kings and dragons set in an ancient world, and he only knew that because he'd heard that _The Lord of the Rings_ was the basis for every role-playing game ever invented. Somehow he'd missed realizing the title of the longer book referred to magic rings, which was ironic, although the ring in this story was clearly much different than his own magic ring, the Millenium Ring which hung on its cord around his neck, hidden under his shirt. Although he was aware of the warmth of the sun again, he could feel its cold touch against his skin at that moment. 

He sensed the Spirit of the Ring stirring in his consciousness. He'd had a feeling that his Other Self had been mentally reading over his shoulder. 

"It does sound like a game of Monster World, doesn't it?" the voice inside his head mused. "Which character are you going to play?"

"I suppose I'd want to be Bilbo," he thought, speaking back to the spirit with his mind. 

"Hmph. Well, I suppose that makes sense. He's a timid little guy until he's cornered, which describes you surprisingly well." The voice held a tinge of sarcasm, and Bakura knew it was referring to the time he'd defied the Spirit to save his newfound friends from the Shadow Game. 

"Maybe..." Bakura said aloud softly. He sometimes doubted he could be that brave again. He felt more like the timid side of Bilbo who wanted to stay at home and avoid adventure. But, like the hobbit in the story, adventure seemed to want to find him, thanks to the Ring. His memories of Duelist Kingdom were a bit muddled, but mixed with some fun and exciting times he knew there had been moments when his courage had failed him, and he'd been glad to have the Spirit of the Ring to help get him and his friends out of trouble. His developing relationship with the Spirit was turning out to be quite an adventure in itself. 

Bakura's hand came up to his neck in what was becoming a habitual gesture, his arm pressing the cool Ring against his chest, unconsciously hugging it to himself. "I'd like to be able to become invisible," he thought. "That could come in handy."

"But you can, Bakura-kun," the Spirit reminded him teasingly. "All you have to do is let me take over, and you can hide your eyes until the bad goblins are gone. Just like little Bilbo and his magic ring of invisibility."

"Maybe..." Bakura said again. But then, he thought in a private part of his mind, there was Gollum, alone in the dark with only his magic ring. That was more like his role in the game. Except that Gollum didn't have the Ring anymore, the timid but heroic hobbit had it now. Just as timid but heroic Yugi had succeeded once in getting rid of the Spirit of the Ring, or so they all thought. But Bakura had brought him back, somehow. He wondered if Gollum would ever get hold of the magic ring again in the story.

He checked his watch; he had fifteen more minutes before he had to get back to class. Just enough time to finish the chapter before going inside to his locker. He opened the book and began to read again.

_"Thief, thief, thief! Baggins! We hates it, we hates it, we hates it forever!" ..._

Bakura came back to the present with a jolt, Gollum's shrill cry echoing confusedly in his mind, as something knocked against him, sending the book flying out of his hands. He blinked up into the shadow that had fallen over him, trying to figure out what was going on. 

"Ha! Gotcha!" A loud, harsh laugh came from the squat figure of the boy standing over him. He was dangling Bakura's book in his hand, grinning to show crooked, broken teeth, and his eyes glittered maliciously. 

"Smart kid, aintcha? Always got yer nose in a book or something." He stood with his knees pressed against Bakura's, holding the book up and out of reach, obviously waiting for Bakura to make some move to get it back. Bakura didn't think reaching up for it would be wise.

"Please give that back," Bakura said, his natural politeness taking over in spite of himself. "It belongs to the library."

"Oh, really? Like I should care?" 

To Bakura's alarm, the kid straddled Bakura's legs, almost sitting on his lap and clamping his knees together. Although he wasn't quite as tall as Bakura, he wsa probably almost twice his weight, his body thick with fat and muscle. He looked down on Bakura, whose eyes were level with his collar. 

"Let's see, what is this anyway?" The kid looked at the book for the first time, taking a long moment to read the simple title. "Ha! This is a little kid's book, you moron! I thought you were a smart kid, but you're just a wimpy little dolt. 'Course, I already knew you were a wimp."

Bakura's view of the scene shifted suddenly, becoming small and sharp, like looking through a keyhole or the wrong end of a telescope. His other self had taken control. His mixed reaction of relief and distress was short lived, as something else happened a second later. The book went flying out of the kid's hand, and his gleefully malicious expression was replaced by one of bewilderment. 

"Hey, what??" 

"Kid's book, huh? I guess it's way beyond your reading level then, isn't it, punk?"

Another figure appeared behind the kid, someone tall and slim and dark haired. It took Bakura a moment to realize who it was, and by then the punk kid had gone flying backwards off Bakura's lap and was struggling to keep his feet under him with his arm twisted in an iron grip.

"Honda-kun?" Bakura thought with surprise. His other self said nothing. 

"Better stick to your picture books, Kombo," Honda said, deftly pulling the book free of the kid's hand and shoving him aside at the same time, then stepping in between him and Bakura. "You'll just strain your feeble excuse for a brain trying to read this stuff!"

"Honda! You jerk," the kid snarled. He hesitated, looking like he wanted to say something really nasty, but apparently thought better of making an outright attack on the taller boy. Bakura knew Honda and Jonouchi didn't get in as many fights as they used to, but when they did, they rarely lost. Obviously Kombo knew this too. He managed to gather his dignity into a "you'll regret this" kind of grim smile before sauntering off. He didn't look back, but his shoulders were hunched up as if shielding himself from an expected blow.

Honda watched him go, and then turned to Bakura, who hadn't moved. 

"You okay?" he said, holding out the book.

Bakura still looked out through his keyhole view of the world, waiting for his other self to return control to him. Instead, the other blinked up at Honda and smiled.

"I'm fine, thank you very much," he said in Bakura's mild voice. "It's a good thing you came along when you did. I'm not very good at dealing with people like that." 

Bakura winced inwardly. The ironic comment was a dig meant partly for him; although his other self had bristled at the kid calling him a wimp, he knew the spirit felt the same about his lack of strength in the face of bullies. Besides, when the spirit was trying to pass himself off as Bakura-kun, he tended to lay it on a little thick.

"Well, I'm great at it, so if that kid ever bothers you again, you just let me know about it. Me and Jonouchi can take care of shit like that for you, you know."

Bakura couldn't tell if his other self wanted to laugh or snarl at that. _I can take care of shit like that myself, you interfering idiot, _the spirit thought, but said nothing, only giving Honda one of Bakura's most charming smiles of gratitude. Bakura could tell he was frustrated at having to keep his presence hidden, but at least it amused the spirit to deceive Bakura's friends.

"Well, I guess we'd better get back to class," Honda said.

_That means it's time for you to take over,_ the spirit said, pulling Bakura back to full conscious control. He blinked up at Honda as he adjusted to the change, and Honda looked down at him with concern. Bakura quickly smiled to cover the blank look he realized he must have on his face. He stood up and put the book in his bag. 

"Yes. And thank you, again, Honda-kun," he said, this time with his own genuine smile of gratitude as they walked toward the building.

(to be continued)


	2. chapter 2

Title: Honda, Bakura, and the Three Trolls (part 2 of 3 or 4)

Author: Tsutsuji

Fandom: Yugioh!

Rating: PG

Pairings: not really any, but sort of Bakura/Ryou and kind of Honda/Ryou

Original characters: no

Type: adventure, just a hint of shonen-ai

Warnings: mild language and violence

Status: Work In Progress

Spoilers: none

Disclaimer: I do not own the copyright to these characters and I'm making no profit from this fic and intend no copyright infringement.

Summary: Ryou's two protectors get into it with three troll-like bullies.

Archive: whatever

Notes: Takes place after Duelist Kingdom, before Battle City. Sort of a cross between anime canon and manga canon - Bakura played Monster World as in the manga, but also the "Favorite Card Shadow Duel" on Duelist Kingdom. Honda thinks he got rid of the Ring and Yami Bakura at Duelist Kingdom.

Names: Ryou Bakura, the host, is called "Bakura" in this story, while Yami Bakura is mostly referred to as The Spirit, because at this point, that's what Bakura and Honda would call him. The Spirit sometimes calls Bakura "Yadonushi" which means host or landlord.

Chapter 2

"Hey, fag!"

Honda heard one of the usual school bullies calling some kid the name, and it made him want to turn right around and punch the guys lights out. Especially since he knew it could easily be Bakura they were talking to. He spun around, but there was no one else visible on the path behind the schoolyard, the one that ran between the vine-covered chain link fence and a half-dead evergreen hedge to an alley. His usual shortcut, but also frequented by other kids who had reason to go to the grimy streets beyond the alley. Not a likely place for Bakura or anyone of his sort.

So who the heck was the tough guy talking to, and where was he hiding anyway?

Honda heard the bushes rustle behind him and spun around again.

"Kombo, you dickhead," he said, hiding his startled reaction to seeing the thick-bodied student lunge out of the shrubbery just a few feet away, right where he'd been about to pass.

"Honda," Kombo said in a nasty singsong voice, doing a parody of a mincing step. "Hey, it's Honda the fag boy!"

There was a muffled laugh and movement behind him, back the way he'd come. Hamaguri, another lumpy-looking kid with grayish, pasty skin, slithered out of the bushes. And up the path behind him came Kugi, with his black leather jacket over his school shirt, and a short length of chain swinging in his hand.

It finally sunk in to Honda's brain that this was no coincidence.

"Kombo, you had to bring your friends along, huh? Couldn't handle me on your own so you called in your little buddies." Honda dropped his book bag and quickly shrugged out of his uniform jacket. "Well, this'll be fun." He grinned, flexed his fists, and glared challengingly at each of them in turn.

"Think you're tough, fagboy, now that you've got yourself a girly-friend to protect," Hamaguri said, with a gurgling laugh.

Honda kept his fierce grin in place while he tried to figure out what the hell the punk was talking about. He didn't have a girlfriend... not yet, anyway. Who the hell started that rumor? And what did these guys care if he did? He was pretty sure none of them had a girl that they'd think he was trying to steal, but maybe he'd missed something.

"You're about to find out what we do with girly-boys like you. And your pretty boy lover is next, because when we're done here, you're not gonna be much good to him or anyone."

Loud alarms went off in Honda's head. _Shit_, he thought as a hot wave of fury ran through him. _They're talking about Bakura! _The fact that they thought he was Bakura's lover didn't even phase him... well, not much. The idea of any one of them laying a hand on his friend made him tense with rage. It also made him wish Jonouchi was here to back him up, because the damn idiots had him surrounded, and he suddenly remembered hearing about how well this little gang of three fought as a team.

Kugi was whirling that chain around in the air, making it flashed like chopper blades. Kombo didn't need a weapon, he was slow but heavy and strong once he got moving, unless he was taken off guard like the last time Honda met him. Hamaguri, he'd heard, was stronger than he looked as well, and although he wasn't above using a blade, he preferred to get his strong, clammy hands around you and listen to your bones snap.

Honda really wished Jou was here.

But there was no way he was going to let them get past him so that Bakura was unprotected. He knew a trouble-magnet when he saw one, and Bakura was definitely a trouble-magnet, just like Yugi had been before Jou had befriended him. Neither of them was tough like he and Jou were, couldn't be if they tried. And they had tried, standing up for their friends against bigger and more dangerous foes, as Yugi had tried to when he and Jou got beaten up by that sadistic brute of a hall monitor, and as Bakura had tried to do against the evil spirit that possessed him. But there was no reason they should have to be tough. That's what guys like him were for, Honda thought grimly, as the three thugs closed in.

Still, it was a well-oiled team of three against one, and he didn't like his odds. This was not going to be pretty.

---

Ryou Bakura couldn't believe he was doing this.

All week he'd been all too aware of the thug, Kombo, watching him from a safe distance, and whispering with his two ugly brute friends in corners. They weren't exactly subtle about it, after all, making sure he knew that they were keeping an eye on his every move. Waiting, no doubt, for a time when they could all corner him alone. He made sure that never happened, and hoped that they'd get tired of waiting for their chance and find something else to do.

He was nervous enough for his own safety, but he was actually much more worried about what would happen to them if they tried anything. Even brutish thugs didn't deserve to end up in mysterious comas.

It helped that Honda now went out of his way to hang around Bakura, chatting with him casually on the way to class, sitting with him or nearby at lunch, and generally just being a very visible presence. When Honda was around, the other three were nowhere to be seen. And that was also nice because he discovered something surprising: Honda liked to read, and had read many of the same adventure stories that Bakura liked. Jonouchi made a show of acting like he didn't know them when they started talking about magic and wizards and quests to save the world. Honda called him an illiterate idiot and punched him in the arm. Bakura felt distressed as they traded insults, but Jou didn't take offense. He just went off to do something else (studying, so he claimed) and left them to it.

In the last two days Bakura thought Kombo and his friends had finally grown bored enough to leave him alone. But then today he realized that this was not exactly the case after all. He came around the corner of the schoolyard, and found them huddled together just as they had been before, but now they weren't watching him. They were watching Honda.

He'd stepped back to the corner and waited. Honda, across the way, was talking with Jou, no doubt making plans for the weekend ahead. They high-fived, then walked away in separate directions, Honda heading for the shortcut that Bakura and most other kids routinely avoided. And a moment later, the other three grinned at each other and left as well, heading in the same direction. One of them split off and headed down the other side of the fenced yard at a trot.

Bakura's concern reached the Spirit.

/That one's gone to jump the fence and cut him off. Looks like they've decided to put your friendly little protector out of the way, Bakura-kun,/ he observed.

"Damn," Bakura swore under his breath.

The Spirit laughed. /My my, such worry over poor Honda! Let him deal with them, Yadonushi. He might prevail. He's not a bad fighter, from what we've heard. And if they come after you, well, then, I'll be here to take care of that!/

/I'd rather you didn't,/ Bakura thought. He hesitated for a moment as the three went out of sight. Then, to the Spirit's surprise, he followed them.

/Just what do you plan to do, Yadonushi?/ he thought with amusement. /Frighten them away with your screams, like the skeletons in Pegasus' cave? Or have you been reading too much fantasy? Here you go, like brave little Bilbo into the lair of the goblins!/

/Shut up! Please./

The Spirit laughed. But he didn't exert his control to turn them around.

He knew the path well enough. It was a shortcut to his apartment, but he never took it because it led through a tough neighborhood. He'd found that out in his very first week at Domino High School. As far as he knew, the tall, leather-clad girl with the bloodshot eyes and the gleaming knife in her shaking fist was still in a coma in the charity ward. As much for the protection of the gang members, addicts and street people in that part of town as for his own safety, he'd never gone that way again, until today.

Bakura was no hobbit, but he had a natural talent for being silent, just like he sometimes managed to be socially invisible when he wanted to. The path bent around the corner of the fenced yard, and around that bend he heard stealthy movements: a rustle in the bushes, and the slight rattle as Hamaguri climbed the fence from the other side. Just as he came to the corner he heard voices. He stopped. He couldn't make out exactly what they were saying but he knew it couldn't be a friendly chat.

Heart pounding, he peeked around the corner, just in time to see Kombo swing the first blow at Honda's head. Honda ducked it easily and danced aside, but Hamaguri was right there on the other side. Honda had to jump back against the hedge to stay out of his reach. Kugi was right behind him, swinging a glittering piece of chain in the air and grinning wildly.

Honda went into a fighting stance, crouching, hands ready, eyes darting from one to the other. He was still smiling as if the whole thing was just what he'd been wanting for a little fun. But they moved in slowly, casually, as if they knew they had all the time in the world to take him down. And although Bakura didn't know much about fighting, he thought it looked like they were more likely to be right. It didn't help any that the Spirit thought so too.

Still, Honda moved fast and got in a kick and a couple of jabs, fairly dancing between them so that their swinging fists met only air. But then one of them aimed a kick at his knee just as Honda dodged another blow, and Honda stumbled into the third one who almost managed to grab him around the neck. Bakura gasped.

/Quiet, you idiot!/ his other self warned.

But it was soon clear they hadn't heard him, as the fight went on without pause. Honda cut loose from the one kid only to run up against another, and although he connected a few more times, he couldn't evade all of their punches. In moments he was pinned between Hamaguri and Kombo, who held his arms in vice-like grips. They tossed him back against the fence, yanking him right up off the ground so his feet were as useless as his fists. Kugi wiped a streak of blood from his mouth and spat, but then he straightened up and grinned. He stood directly in front of Honda, his chain whirling brightly in the air. He looked as happy as a kid at a carnival.

Bakura darted out from his hiding place around the corner. He'd taken two steps when he jerked to a stop, but not by his own decision.

/What are you doing, idiot!/ the spirit shouted in his brain, clamping his leg muscles to keep him from taking another step.

"Let go!" Bakura yelled. He meant the Spirit, but as the three thugs turned to him in surprise, he glared at them as well. "Let him go," he yelled at them, rather as an afterthought.

/Now you've done it,/ the spirit thought. /Do you want to get killed?/

"Bakura? Get out of here, now!" Honda shouted. "Go on..." his warning was cut off as Kugi's fist slammed into his gut.

Bakura broke through the Spirit's hold over his body and ran forward to his friend's aid, with no idea what he could do besides join him in getting beaten to a pulp.

---

to be continued....


	3. Chapter 3

Title: Honda, Bakura, and the Three Trolls (part 3 of 3)

Author: Tsutsuji

Fandom: Yugioh!

Rating: PG13, for a bit of language

Pairings: none really, but hints of Bakura/Ryou and maybe Honda/Ryou

Original characters: no

Type: action/adventure

Warnings: none

Status: work in progress?

Spoilers: none

Disclaimer: I do not own the copyright to these characters and I'm making no profit from this fic and intend no copyright infringement.

Summary: Ryou Bakura has more than one protector from school bullies, who get way more than they bargained for when they decide to pick on Honda.

Archive: whatever

Notes: Finally.... another story where the ending came to me ages ago, and I finally wrote the beginning and middle! There will probably be a sequel that reveals more about the relationship between Ryou, Bakura, and Honda. Eventually. If anyone cares.

"Bakura" is Ryou Bakura. "The Spirit" or "the other Bakura" is Yami Bakura.

Chapter 3

Honda couldn't believe it. When he'd thought it couldn't get any worse, it did. It wasn't enough that he was going to end up in the hospital, possibly mained for life. Now Bakura was going to end up that way as well, if he didn't end up dead... or worse.

"Bakura, get lost!" he yelled, wheezing. It felt like his intestines had been shoved upward by Kugi's fist and wrapped around his lungs.

Kombo and Hamaguri swung him around to face his would-be rescuer. Kugi stepped around them as Bakura came dashing up, running - to Honda's dismay - just like a girl, with his long, silvery-white hair streaming around his pale, pretty face.

But there was a fierce look in his eyes, something Honda had only seen a flash of once before, when he'd turned against the evil spirit that was in control of his body. There was fear there, too, but Honda realized that it wasn't for himself... it was for his friend.

The others watched with amused expressions as Bakura jerked to a sudden stop a few feet away. He pulled himself up and glared at them. Kugi laughed out loud.

"This makes it easier, doesn't it?" he said.

"Yeah," Hamaguri chuckled. "Oooh, I want a lock of that pretty hair! Or maybe..." he reached quickly into his back pocket, and a second later a gleaming white blade flashed in his hand. "Or maybe the whole scalp!"

"Shit," Honda muttered. He struggled to shrug out of their grasp, but Kombo only twisted his arm up against his back, pinning him so he could hardly move at all without breaking something.

Bakura stood stock-still, legs spread, arms out at his side, and his brown eyes wide and dark. Something in his expression caught Honda's eye. It wasn't just the desperate, defiant gaze he'd seen as if in a dream on Bakura's face before. There was a flicker of something else, something that was also familiar.

As the others watched with wary amusement to see what their intended victim would do, Bakura brought his hands up in front of him, as if he was holding something invisible in the air. A shiver ran down Honda's spine. He'd seen this before, alright. But he'd never expected to see it again. It couldn't be real.

But it was. He watched with fascination as the golden Ring appeared, at first seeming to float in the air before becoming a solid metal reality hanging around Bakura's neck. Bakura smiled. Only, Honda knew, it wasn't Bakura anymore.

When he'd been sure it _really_ couldn't get any worse, it did. Again.

"No fucking way," he gasped. "I got rid of that thing?"

"Did you really? Perhaps you were mistaken. Maybe it was only a dream," said the strange, familiar voice.

"You're gone! I got rid of you for good!" Honda yelled, no longer caring about Kugi and his goons.

The Spirit in possession of Bakura laughed. "You thought it was that easy to get rid of me? Well, you'd better think again."

"Don't fight, now, lovers," Kugi said with an ugly smirk. "Cause you're not gonna get a chance to kiss and make up later."

"Yeah, when we're through messing with your face, nobody's gonna want to kiss it anyway, 'cause it's not gonna be pretty anymore" Kombo laughed.

Hamaguri flashed the blade in the air with a grin

"You have no idea how wrong you are," The Other Bakura said calmly.

He reached slowly and deliberately around to take something from his back pocket. The bullies tensed,and Kugi quickly took a menacing step toward him. Then there was a burst of relieved but disbelieving laughter when they saw what he was holding: a deck of cards.

Honda didn't laugh.

"That stupid card game!" Kombo said, still laughing. "Duel Monsters! That's for kids and sissies like you two!"

"What are you going to do, throw cards at us? Think we should duck, guys?" they laughed.

"Oh, you think so, do you?" the Spirit said smoothly. "It will be fun showing you how wrong you are. For instance, here's an interesting card..."

Honda couldn't see the card, but he could see its effect as the other Bakura casually tossed it into the air between the three. They watched it float in front of them, apparently unable to look away, and then their eyes glazed over and their expressions went blank, hands hanging limp at their sides. They looked more like zombies than anything else. But this also meant that the two that had been holding Honda by the arms had lost their grip, and he stepped away from them quickly. He turned to stare at Bakura - the other Bakura - who stood waiting with an expectant smile. His eyes glinted red in the twilight of the alley.

"You can't be here!" Honda said. "I got rid of you!"

"I'm not that easy to get rid of, especially as it seems my host missed me after all, despite his earlier betrayal. As a matter of fact, I owe you, Honda. Your attempt to free Bakura from my control only served to reveal the truth. Instead of getting rid of me, you gave me something that is very important to me."

"What does that mean?" Honda asked uneasily.

"I doubt you would understand, so I won't explain. But in return, I will do you a favor. Unfortunately, you won't appreciate it, because you won't remember any of this happened, but that's the way it must be for now."

Honda still had no idea what he was talking about, and was pretty sure he didn't want to know anyway. The other Bakura stooped and picked something off the ground: Honda's deck that had fallen out of his book bag. He bristled as the dark spirit flipped through the cards.

"Ah, I see you still have your favorite card..." he held up the Cyber Commander card. Honda cringed.

"You're not gonna put me back inside that card!" he said fiercely.

But he had no idea what he could do to prevent it.

"No. I'm merely going to use it to even the odds," the other Bakura said, and laughed. He tossed the card into the air – and CyberCommander appeared full-sized before them, as solid as life. He looked like an older, fiercer Honda. He nodded silently to the other Bakura, then stepped aside, into the shadows.

"You fight fairly well for a 'modern human,'" the other Bakura said to Honda, "but I think he will do the job more efficiently." Somehow he flicked the trap card he'd tossed earlier back into his hand, and as he did Honda's attackers blinked and stirred. They looked at each other for a second, bewildered, knowing something weird was going on but not sure what it was. They spotted Honda and Bakura, and that seemed to remind them what they were about to do- give two sissy geeks a beating. Kombo and Hamaguri lunged to grab Honda again, while Kugi looked at Bakura like he had just found dessert served to him on a plate.

Then Cyber Commander stepped in front of them, his eyes hard and glinting like steel.

"Who the hell are you?" Kugi challenged, while the other two looked from Cyber Comander to Honda and back again,.

Cyber Commander didn't speak. He just reached out and cuffed Kombo, who was closest, on the side of his head, sending him staggering backward. It looked like a casual swipe of his hand, but the bully went stumbling backward.

Kombo was enraged. "Oh, yeah?" he said shaking himself upright. Honda almost laughed at the absurd response. The other Bakura did laugh, which only made the bully go more red in the face. Bristling like a porcupine, he threw up his fists, ready to strike back at this replica of his intended victim.

Honda couldn't see his look-alike's mouth, but he had the impression Cyber Commander was grinning.

After that, it was over pretty quickly. Cyber Commander ducked the first swipe of Kombo's thick fist and darted in. Kombo had a second to realize his mistake before Cyber Commander hit him again, full on with his fist this time. Kombo went down and stayed down.

Hamaguri let go of Honda, and he and Kugi moved in. Cyber Commander seemed mesmerized by the flash of Kugi's swirling chain. But suddenly his hand shot out, and the next thing Honda knew, Kugi's chain was wrapped around his own neck. Cyber Commander planted his knee in Kugi's back and shoved, and Kugi went down in the dust, limp as a rag.

Hamaguri's eyes nearly bugged out of his pasty face. But he stuck out his chin and raised his fists, and dove toward Cyber Commander. A second later, he landed next to his friends, out cold.

Cyber Commander gazed down at each of them. He seemed a bit disapointed. He turned and stood at attention before the other Bakura. Fascinated, Honda stepped up beside him and gazed at him in awe.

"Wow, he's good," Honda said, forgetting that he was talking about a magically-conjured card-spirit that shouldn't even exist.

"Handsome as well," the other Bakura said wryly. That brought Honda back to reality.

"Oh crap. Hey – you're not gonna send those guys to the Shadow Realm, are you?"

"I would love to, but if they disappear or go into comas after they were seen bothering my Bakura, it would raise questions which I would rather not have raised at the moment, especially in the mind of your friend Yugi. I told you, I'm doing you a favor, as well as protecting my hikari and myself. When these goons come to, they will think you did all the damage. I doubt even they will be stupid enough to bother you or my other self again."

"Huh? They'll think I did it? Why? And what's your hikari?" Honda asked, more puzzled than ever.

"As I said, you wouldn't understand." He gazed at Honda thoughtfully for a moment, as if he was considering whether to explain himself anyway. Instead he gave Honda a dangerous looking smile. "Bakura considers you his friend. Be sure it stays that way. You don't want to end up on my bad side."

"Uh, no, I sure don't," Honda agreed, wondering why he wasn't already. He almost added "You mean you have a good side?" but fortunately he managed not to say it out loud. Something clicked in his mind: hikari, his other self... his Bakura? Did he mean Bakura is his good side?

As this surprising thought occurred to him, the Millenium Ring flashed brightly, and Honda hid his eyes. "Yeaaah!" he yelped, and next thing he knew...

... He was shaking his head to try to clear it, and wondering why he was half-sitting, half kneeling on the ground, with one very slack-looking senior class bully flat on his back in front of him. His face hurt, and his fist hurt even more. Maybe that had something to do with the big lumpy bruise on the side of Hamaguri's face?

"Honda? Are you alright?"

"Huh?"

Honda looked up, surprised at the mild-sounding voice, thinking it couldn't be who it sounded like. But it was. There stood Bakura, of all people, gazing down at him in concern, his eyes wide. He held out a hand, and Honda gratefully accepted the help in climbing to his feet.

"You did quite a job on them," Bakura said in a tone of admiring wonder.

"Uh, yeah...I guess..." he vaguely remembered hitting at least one of them, as it came back to him in bits and pieces: the confrontation, the rude comments about Bakura and himself, and somebody grabbing him by the arm. But did he hit all of them? He could remember seeing each of them go down. As he thought about it some more he did seem to remember hitting each one of them, but it was as if he'd been outside his body, watching himself move. "Guess that's what happens sometimes when you're In The Zone," he said to himself. At any rate, his fists felt like they'd connected with a few faces, although his own face felt nearly as bad as the guy on the ground looked.

"Oh, and here, you dropped this," Bakura said, holding something out in his hand. "I hope nothing's missing."

"Oh! My deck. Thanks."

"Is that what the fight was about?" Bakura asked.

"Well, uh, yeah." Honda blinked, suddenly not wanting to look his classmate in the face as he remembered what they'd said about him. About them, in fact. He wasn't sure what Bakura would think and he didn't want to embarrass him, so he latched on to the idea that the fight was about Duel Monsters.

"They said card games like this are just for kids, and people who play Duel Monsters are losers. I couldn't let them get away with that!"

"Well, you certainly made your point," Bakura said happily.

Honda looked at Bakura and found him smiling that same wide, charming smile that had once scared the wits out of him and Jounouchi. How could he ever have been afraid of that innocent face, Honda wondered. He suddenly noticed that Bakura had a beautiful smile, you just didn't get to see it very often. "And that's a shame," he thought, to his own surprise.

"They seem to be coming round," Bakura said. "Er, should we do something with them?"

Honda glanced at the three victims, each of whom were starting to stir, moaning a bit. He'd been in enough fights, on both sides of things, to know that they weren't seriously injured. Tomorrow they'd be sore and pissed off, but maybe they'd also be a little more cautious of him now.

"Nah. Best if we aren't around when they wake up," he said. "Let's go. It's getting dark."

He led the way to the end of the alley and back out onto the street. It was a dingy part of town, but after the alley it felt like a gleaming, well-lit haven of safety. Once amid shops and people again, they paused.

"If you want to get cleaned up," Bakura said hesitantly, "my home isn't far."

He gestured across and down the street. Honda's home was in the other direction, and he still had quite a way to go .

"Do I look that bad?" he said, trying to catch his reflection in a shop window. He glanced down at his bruised hands, and noticed a new rip in his jacket.

"Well, no, not really," Bakura admitted. "I just thought I'd offer..."

He was smiling again, and yet he seemed nervous. It made the smile even more charming. Suddenly Honda felt nervous as well.

"I, uh, guess I'll just head on home, I guess," Honda said. "I appreciate the offer, though!"

"Okay. If you're sure?"

"Yeah..." Honda took a step back.

"Well, see you, then," Bakura said. "Thanks!" He turned away and started off down the street.

Honda stood blinking, suddenly wishing he'd gone along with Bakura's offer, though he wasn't sure why.

"Why go to Bakura's? I'm not that much of a mess. Then again, why not go? What's the big deal?"

He felt confused. Why had Bakura been on that path behind the school, anyway? And what had he just said "thanks" for? And what the heck was making him feel so nervous that he couldn't just go visit with his friend for awhile?

He couldn't answer any of those questions, so he gave up and went home.

Later, he took off his shirt and surveyed the damage in the mirror. It wasn't so bad, really. His knuckles and the bruises on his arms were the most obvious, and there was another bruise on his ribs that was going to look worse before it looked better. But his face wasn't as bad as it felt, not even a black eye to show for his efforts. "Heh. You should've seen the other guys!" he said to his reflection. "And they were lucky!"

He wondered why he thought that. As a matter of fact, he'd been damn lucky. They could have beaten him to a pulp, between the three of them, and it just had to be luck that he got his licks in first. He wished he could remember how he'd managed to knock them all flat even though he'd practically passed out as well. He wondered what Jonouchi would think when he heard about it.

Honda pulled his deck out of his pocket and glanced through it, checking for damage. He took a second, longer look, counting the cards. Then he counted them again.

"Damn!" He slammed the deck on his desk. "I'll have to go back and search the spot. It's gotta be there. Hope those jerks didn't find it."

There was only one card missing, but of course it had to be his favorite card

the end for now....

(Note: In the anime, Yami Bakura seems to be able to make people forget things, at least temporarily, and he also seems to bring card-monsters to life. I'm using those parts of the anime reality here, even though neither of these things is true in the manga, as far as I know.)


End file.
